VMware's Latest Virtualization Software Supports Vista

By Scott Ferguson |
Posted 05-09-2007

VMware has added to the latest version of its workstation virtualization software support for Microsoft's Windows Vista operating system.

The Workstation 6 desktop virtualization software, or hypervisor, which the Palo Alto, Calif., company officially launched May 9, allows multiple operating systems or other applications to run on the same physical machine.

VMware, which is owned by EMC, has long been considered the leading provider of virtualization technology within the enterprise space. Later this year, the company is planning to sell off 10 percent of itself in an IPO (initial public offering).

The IPO news comes at a time when VMware's dominance of the market is being challenged by other virtualization vendors, such as Virtual Iron and XenSource, which are using an open-source hypervisor and are offering the technology at a much lower cost.

In addition to supporting Vista, Workstation 6 offers a number of other improvements, including support for multiple monitors, which have become essential features within the financial services sector and graphic design companies.

The update to VMware's workstation product also supports USB 2.0 devices. Users can also download the company's ACE Option Pack, which allows customers to store their virtual machine images in a USB memory stick.

VMware is offering an experimental feature with its new release that allows users to "record and replay" a virtual machine. This addition allows users to record the entire deployment of a virtual machine from beginning to end and then allows the users to rewind back to the beginning of the deployment.

From there, users can replay the deployment while checking for bugs or other problems.

The starting price for VMware's Workstation 6 for both Linux and Windows host operating systems is $189.

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